Title belts in Thailand

[the_dragon]

You hear of the great stadiums and titles such as Lumpini and Rajaiderm, and other ones such as Patong, Omnoi, Channel 7 etc. Was wondering how do you win such a belt, is it based on ranking, 8man tournaments and is it continuous?

[blacklisted]

by the looks of things they give them away willy-nilly.

[poondaddy]

quote:Originally posted by blacklisted

by the looks of things they give them away willy-nilly.

Channel 7 belts aren't handed out willy nilly...

[Hellfighter]

Lumpinee, Rajadamnern, Siam Omnoi and the southern and northern titles are all fiercely fought for

what the "willy-nilly" comment is based towards are the various sanctioning bodies that appear to choose who they want to fight for them and how quickly they appear to change hands

[phuket soi easy]

Willy Nilly?I dont think so.....ive seen some hotly contested fights in Patong,when there was only one stadium 45 mins drive out of Patong by the way,for the Southern Thailand Championship belt.But Blacklisted,if your talking about Patong stadium,i think i see what you mean.

[phuket soi easy]

Damn right Hell,those are very hotly contested,with big money and rewards such as a kilogram of gold on offer,new pick up trucks,and the like on offer plus the belt that brings life long prestege and fame.They probably cant afford to just keep handind those rewards out willy nilly.

[blacklisted]

with exception to the bigger stadiums, like hellfighter mentioned, belts at the smaller venues in/around patong etc are handed out for ****s and giggles. plus, the amount of sanctioning bodies ruins the appeal of having a belt.

[Hellfighter]

that can be said for all over the world too

[blacklisted]

truth.

i guess i just notice it more when referring to thailand after seeing many people go over for a few weeks and end up fighting for a local stadium title.

[Hellfighter]

half those people don't even know they are fighting for a belt... I've had a couple of friends go to Phuket to fight and have returned with a belt, they said they left the ring and were called back to receive their title... no extra money, just a title

big deal I reckon, a belt is a belt

[blacklisted]

that was my point entirely.

i think i'm just jealous actually, not sure.

[gvmartialarts]

Hey, I won a Patong stadium title, but it was organised and was asked to come back 3 weeks later to defend it (which I didn't). But I have heard the same stories as blacklisted about them training there for 2 weeks and fighting for a title. At least I got a bus trip from BKK to come over lol.

[Hazard]

quote:Originally posted by blacklisted

with exception to the bigger stadiums, like hellfighter mentioned, belts at the smaller venues in/around patong etc are handed out for ****s and giggles. plus, the amount of sanctioning bodies ruins the appeal of having a belt.


With the island stadiums, I think you get the title but have to pay for the belt. These places are a tourist trap.

Regional titles (Northeast, Southern etc.) are very serious due to the betting. A Thai I know was 1 pound over and couldn't make weight. The allowed the fight to go ahead, he won but was not given the title. Standards for real muay thai are very high, I don't think we'll see world titles being decided via reality TV.

[ChrisQ]

quote:Originally posted by Sor.NakSooMuayThai

Hey, I won a Patong stadium title, but it was organised and was asked to come back 3 weeks later to defend it (which I didn't). But I have heard the same stories as blacklisted about them training there for 2 weeks and fighting for a title. At least I got a bus trip from BKK to come over lol.


So a former Patong Champion ey Matt? LoL

[Hellfighter]

Hazard, if you win a WMC, WPMF or WBC World Title you have to pay for the belt... not just on the islands

no, we won't see titles from reality tv, but we will/do see titles via who the punters go for

[gvmartialarts]

quote:Originally posted by ChrisQ

quote:Originally posted by Sor.NakSooMuayThai

Hey, I won a Patong stadium title, but it was organised and was asked to come back 3 weeks later to defend it (which I didn't). But I have heard the same stories as blacklisted about them training there for 2 weeks and fighting for a title. At least I got a bus trip from BKK to come over lol.


So a former Patong Champion ey Matt? LoL


It's nearly as good as my Patpong Champion belt Quirks.

[Hellfighter]

was that when you beat the ping-pong champion, Mat?

[gvmartialarts]

Nah mate, my banana-projecting skillz sealed the victory

[Hellfighter]

that's nasty.... eeeewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww

[Hazard]

quote:Originally posted by Hellfighter

Hazard, if you win a WMC, WPMF or WBC World Title you have to pay for the belt... not just on the islands

no, we won't see titles from reality tv, but we will/do see titles via who the punters go for


Do they SMS their votes?

[ScottL]

Hey hellfighter. I didn't realise you have to buy your own belt for those sanctioning bodies. Kind of defeats the purpose of winning your belt as a prize for becoming champion.

[Hellfighter]

well, I know over here they do and they cost approx. 12000baht each

[ScottL]

That's about $500 aussie dollars isn't it. Thats a bit of a bugger. "Here's your title now i want $500 to pay for it."

[KL]

Northern belts - you don't get to keep them, as far as I can tell... have had a few Northern champs at the gym - they seem to actually change hands when they are won/lost

[phuket soi easy]

Hey Blacklisted,I agree,i actually got sick and tired of seeing people go there for a week or two then "win" the stadium belt.I reckon they do it for the money.Stroking some farangs ego,then when he "wins" against his oppenent,he has to pay for the belt.
I remember when my friend went to fight in Patong and had a good hard fight.No title,no big money but he got the respect and has the dvd to prove it.That to me is worth more than a belt that was "bought".

just my 2 cents,but i still stress that in Phuket,before the wave of farangs training and fighting there,the fights were incredibly hard and the boxers fought up to twice a week.YES TWICE.The belts were NOT easy to get.These boxers often went to BKK to fight in the big stadiums.Southern fighters are highly respected in Thailand for their art.But yes in the last couple of years since MuayThai has gotten so popular,stadiums,shops and that annoying truck with "tonight,tonight" has flooded Patong,its money and they want their share.Jeez,i can remember i had to hunt down where the stadium was and shorts were $12 aussie.Now,to me,MuayThai is just something to be sold and make easy money from farangs who go there.
Im looking forward to the next trip to Thailand but it wont be Phuket Samui or any other farang soaked province.Hopefully i will again find Muay Thai as it should be and some shorts for $12 LOL

[the_dragon]

So how does Lumpini and Rajaderm stadium ranking and titles operate? and not sure, but is the Champion of Thailand title mroe highly regarded ?

[Hellfighter]

even though the Champion of Thailand is a very prestigious award, Lumpinee Titles are rated as the highest acheivement followed by Rajadamnern Stadium titles

a nakmuay has to fight their way up to get the opportunity to vie for a title, same as any sanctioning body, the competition over here is very tough indeed and the weights are determined by the betting odds eg.

Nong-B vs Nopparat at Rajadamnern... Nong-B weight was to be 131lbs and Nopparat weight was to be 129lbs, on fight day at the weigh-in if Nopparat's weight was 130lbs the fight would have been cancelled

[jkzero]

TWICE a week is not that often. In Isaan, there are heaps of kids doing that these days - you can find people fighting far more frequently, too. Met a kid there who fought 6 nights in a row. Hard fights, too.

Even in Chiang Mai, full of tourists, you'll find boxers fighting more than once a week (not every single week, perhaps...). Back in the older days (70s/80s), it was apparently common for fighters to fight at one stadium, drive to the next, and fight there. But live audiences are too small, and Thailand is richer, so this isn't the case anymore.

[Hellfighter]

who said Thailand is richer?

[no contest]

a WPMF belt is 20'000thb,. you do win it on the night but if you want to keep it it will cost you .
belts are expensive to produce and the promoters of some of these events dont make all that much money .
thats just the way it is .....

[Hellfighter]

geez, they've gone up in price! when Gibi (De Souza) RomsrithongGym won his WPMF World Title at Lumpinee they wanted 16000baht and before that when Cosmo won his World Title at the Queen's Birthday celebrations they wanted 12000baht

[jkzero]

Been to Chiang Mai lately?

People have a higher disposable income than they once did... They will tell you so, if you ask. Or, you could check the world bank figures on Thailand, GNP has risen to approx. US $3500 per head of population...

[hunter01]

Stop talking about this one guys, aussie promoters might get ideas to charge for belts!

[the_dragon]

how does the thai ranking system work for Lumpini etc, and is it similar to fighter ranking systems worldwide including Australia?